Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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12 NOV. 30, 2019 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED UNDER THE DOME Irish student-athletes excelling on the field and in the classroom Dylan Jacobs — Cross Country The sophomore from Orland Park, Ill., paced the Irish to a second-place finish at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional Nov. 15 in Madison, Wis. He led the way among four Irish harriers who earned all-region honors with top-25 finishes, placing eighth in his first-ever colle- giate cross country 10K with a time of 30:20.5. Two weeks earlier, Jacobs earned All-ACC accolades with a fifth-place showing at the league championship meet. Andrew Machovec — Fencing The 6-foot-5 foilist from East Rockaway, N.Y., started off his sophomore season right where he left off as a freshman last year. He posted a 10-3 mark at the season-opening Elite Invita- tional in Philadelphia to help the Irish men go 3-2. Last year, Machovec com- piled a 33-5 record (.868 winning percentage), helped Notre Dame claim the league title with an 8-1 mark and finished third in the individual competition at the ACC Championships. Morgan Partridge — Fencing The senior foilist from Swansea, Mass., opened her final season with the Irish in fine fashion, compiling a 9-2 mark while helping the Notre Dame women go 4-1 at the season-opening Elite Invita- tional in Philadelphia. Partridge is looking to build on a junior season that saw her post a career-best 36-6 record in dual com- petition, while helping the Irish capture the ACC championship. Her career record entering the season was 72-29 (.713). Kiki Van Zanten — Soccer The freshman from Buffalo Grove, Ill., found the back of the net in the 41st min- ute to deliver Notre Dame to the second round of the NCAA Tournament with a 1-0 victory over Saint Louis Nov. 17. It was her fourth goal of the season and her second game-winner, with the other occurring in a 1-0 road win versus Michigan Sept. 6. Van Zanten was tied for third on the team in goals and was fourth in points (eight). TOP OF THE CLASS ✦ GIMME FIVE Prior to the 21st century, any defense that allowed more than 20 points per game was deemed a sieve. The 1990 Notre Dame defense that permitted 22.6 points per game — despite having All-Ameri- cans such as nose tackle Chris Zorich, linebacker Mi- chael Stonebreaker and cornerback Todd Lyght — ranked 90th in scoring defense. Through 10 weeks of the 2019 season, that would have been No. 36. Football has changed dramatically the past few decades, especially in the ability to put up points. Today, if a defense is holding the opposition to less than 20 points per game, that is stellar. Under second-year defensive coordinator Clark Lea, Notre Dame was 18th in scoring defense this season with a 19.3 average during its 8-2 start. Last year it placed No. 13 with an 18.2 average. If it maintains the pace this year, it will be the first time since 2001-02 the Fighting Irish would have the average under 20 in consecutive years. Here are the five best figures since the turn of the century in 2000. Year (Record) Scoring Defense Rank 1. 2012 (12-1) 12.8 2 2. 2002 (10-3) 16.7 9 3. 2018 (12-1) 18.3 13 4. 2019 (8-2)* 19.3 18 5. 2001 (5-6) 19.5 22 * Does not yet include this year's Boston College and Stanford games in the regular season, plus the bowl CHARTING THE IRISH AXES, BELLS AND BUCKETS One of the oldest and longest-lasting college football traditions is the exchanging of a rivalry trophy. These are often obscure items such as a golden boot or an oaken bucket. Notre Dame has a number of rivalry trophies with several different teams, four of which made Super Tailgate's list of the Best College Football Rivalry Trophies. Appearing at No. 3 on the list is the Jeweled Shillelagh, which is given to the winner of Notre Dame's annual matchup with USC. At No. 21 is the Megaphone Trophy, given to the winner of Notre Dame versus Michigan State, a matchup that has not occurred since 2017. The final two Irish rivalry trophies on the list are the Frank Leahy Memorial with Boston College at No. 28 and the Legends Trophy with Stanford at No. 32. Best College Football Rivalry Trophies - Per Super Tailgate Rk. Teams Trophy 1. Minnesota vs. Wisconsin Paul Bunyan's Axe 2. Texas vs. Oklahoma Golden Hat 3. Notre Dame vs. USC* Jeweled Shillelagh 4. Minnesota vs. Iowa Floyd of Rosedale 5. Purdue vs. Indiana Old Oaken Bucket 6. USC* vs. UCLA Victory Bell 7. Louisville* vs. Cincinnati Keg of Nails 8. Colorado State vs. Wyoming Bronze Boot 9. Arizona vs. Arizona State Territorial Cup 10. Oregon vs. Oregon State Platypus Trophy 11. Michigan* vs. Minnesota Little Brown Jug 13. Navy* vs. Army Commander-in-Chief's Trophy 14. Stanford* vs. Cal Stanford Axe 16. Michigan* vs. Michigan State Paul Bunyan Trophy 21. Notre Dame vs. Michigan State Megaphone Trophy 26. Boston College* vs. Clemson O'Rourke-McFadden Trophy 28. Notre Dame vs. Boston College* Frank Leahy Memorial Bowl 32. Notre Dame vs. Stanford* Legends Trophy Getting To Know … SENIOR SAFETY ALOHI GILMAN Hometown: Laiea, Hawai'i High school: Kahuku Major: Economics Favorite food: "I love pretty much everything, but Chinese is my favorite." Favorite movie: "My favorite movie is 'Love & Basketball.'" Favorite music: "I am sure it is a common response, but I like R&B." Favorite musician: "My favorite artist right now is Musiq Soul Child." Favorite TV show: "'Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.'" Greatest football memory: "My first college touchdown as a freshman against UConn. It was a fumble recovery and run." Who is your idol: "My idol has to be my dad." Favorite part about playing for Notre Dame: "Brotherhood of the team." Toughest player you've ever faced: "[Cur- rent Indianapolis Colts running back] Marlon Mack when he was playing at South Florida." MOVING? Call us at 1-800-421-7751 * 2019 Notre Dame opponent